Playing a Part

Chen Yuan confirmed a few details with Wen Rou, and in the end, they decided to make their move three days later.

After discussing the matter, Chen Yuan asked, "Boss Wen, have there been any major events in the martial world lately? Do I have to pay for that information?"

Wen Rou looked at Chen Yuan strangely. "You don't need to pay for things everyone already knows. But why are you asking? You haven't even left Linked Mountains City yet. What do these major events have to do with you?"

"They don't have much to do with me. I'm simply curious. A frog may live at the bottom of a well, but if it cannot even hear the sounds beyond the well, then it is truly stupid beyond saving."

Chen Yuan wanted to gather information about the outside world from Wen Rou. He also wanted to match the current timeline with some of the major plot developments he remembered.

Wen Rou did not press further and said directly, "There have indeed been quite a few major events in the martial world recently. News has been coming from Skywind Rain-Listening Tower's headquarters almost every day.

"The biggest matter was that one month ago, Zhishilang, the great bandit lord of Yanzhou, raised the banner of rebellion at Changbai Mountain and established the Day-Changing Alliance to rebel against the imperial court.

"He composed a song: 'Before Changbai Mountain stands Zhishilang, clad only in red silk brocade underpants.'

"With one call from Zhishilang, more than a hundred thousand people gathered beneath his banner. Countless Yanzhou wanderers and heroes answered his call, creating an overwhelming force. Within days, they successively captured nine cities in Yanzhou and beheaded Prince Yan Zhao Pan, a member of the imperial clan, hanging his head from the city gate tower for birds to peck at.

"However, the court soon dispatched Dingnan Army's grand general, Xiahou Jiuxiao, to lead an expedition against them. He repeatedly defeated the Day-Changing Alliance rebels and seized back five cities in one push. The two sides are still locked in a standoff.

"Half a month ago, the 'Sword God' Xie Kunwu went alone to the Western Frontier and challenged Sonam Simo, the abbot of the great Tantric sect Zunxiang Faneng Temple, known as the 'Bright King Descending into the World.'

"No one dared watch that battle from nearby, but someone more than ten miles away saw the golden light of a great sun melt snow-capped mountains. Its might was immense.

"Afterward, Sword God Xie Kunwu cut through Zunxiang Faneng Temple's sacred mountain, Dorje Gomba, with a single sword strike. The lingering sword light took several days to slowly dissipate.

"No one knew who had won that battle. After returning, Xie Kunwu sealed off Sword God Mountain and entered seclusion, while Zunxiang Faneng Temple also announced that it would close the mountain and temple to outsiders.

"Then, ten days ago, the divine artifact Luofu Heavenly Scripture appeared in Yongzhou.

"It was said that this divine artifact recorded countless supreme cultivation methods, even peerless divine arts that surpassed the heaven rank.

"Legend had it that anyone capable of comprehending the Luofu Heavenly Scripture could shatter the void, break through the limits of martial arts, and ascend in broad daylight.

"The appearance of the Luofu Heavenly Scripture drew countless aristocratic families, sects, and martial powers into the struggle. For a time, casualties were innumerable.

"In the chaos of battle, the Luofu Heavenly Scripture ultimately vanished. No one could determine whether it had fled away again or been taken by someone. Several major Yongzhou sects were still investigating its whereabouts, and the aftershocks of the matter had yet to fade.

"Those were all major events that shook the martial world in other provinces. Quite a few things have also happened locally in Youzhou.

"More than ten days ago, Qingyang City, not far from Linked Mountains City, was breached by the Black Mountain Bandits. The city's three major powers—the Six Harmonies Gang, the Zhang Family, and the Hong Family—were all wiped out.

"Even disciples of the One Qi Piercing Sun Alliance who had been handling affairs in the city were killed by the Black Mountain Bandits. Enraged, the One Qi Piercing Sun Alliance dispatched experts to exterminate them and posted a bounty, drawing countless Youzhou experts there.

"Also, Demon-Sealing Valley, at the border between Youzhou and Ningzhou, will soon host the Demon-Sealing Conference. Heroes from across the martial world have been invited to attend. It is said that this Demon-Sealing Conference will hold some surprises as well, though no one knows how it will differ from the previous ones."

Wen Rou had rattled off many major events from throughout the Nineteen Provinces of Great Xia and Youzhou. Chen Yuan now had a rough grasp of the situation.

Moreover, some of these major events had not appeared in the plot at all, such as Sword God Xie Kunwu challenging Sonam Simo, the abbot of Zunxiang Faneng Temple.

At this point in the original plot, the timeline had only just begun. All the players were still in the novice village.

Those top martial-world experts existed only in legends. Naturally, matters that took place between them would not appear in the plot.

This once again made Chen Yuan realize that what he knew was merely the plot he "knew," not the entire world.

Even the plot he knew might go astray because of the slightest change, completely diverging from his memories.

After confirming the time of action with Wen Rou, Chen Yuan rose to take his leave.

"Young Master Chen, don't you want to spend a little more time with me? The moment we finish talking business, you're in such a hurry to leave?"

Wen Rou gave Chen Yuan a resentful glance.

She looked like she was staring at some heartless man who put on his clothes and left immediately after finishing the deed.

Chen Yuan looked at Wen Rou with a faint smile. "Everyone knows that Skywind Rain-Listening Tower's intelligence agents are the best at getting people to talk. I'm afraid that if I keep chatting with Boss Wen, you'll even trick me into telling you about wetting the bed as a child."

With a wave of his hand, Chen Yuan went straight downstairs.

Behind him, Wen Rou gave a soft snort and ground her teeth in irritation.

Chen Yuan looked young, like some martial-world novice who had only just set foot outside.

Yet in truth, he would not yield to oil or salt. He was like a stone in a latrine—stinking and hard, impossible to get a grip on.

Three days passed in the blink of an eye.

During those three days, Chen Yuan had focused entirely on cultivating the Coiling Silk Shattered Jade Hand.

The Azure Wood Method progressed far too slowly. Rather than waste time on it, he might as well cultivate the Coiling Silk Shattered Jade Hand. For one thing, he could use Shattered-Jade Force and Silk-Winding Force to temper his meridians and increase his strength.

For another, increasing his proficiency in the Coiling Silk Shattered Jade Hand would also significantly improve his combat power.

Three days later, Chen Yuan arrived at Peaceful Ward. He found the tallest tavern in the ward, sat by a window, and observed the activity below.

Diagonally across from the tavern stood an inconspicuous little noodle stall. It did not even have a signboard, only a pot and four small tables.

A white-haired old man with one blind eye was cooking noodles there. He even limped when he walked.

Beside the old man was a delicate, adorable little girl of around seven or eight. She helped carry noodles and bowls, bustling about nonstop.

Whether because the old man's cooking was good or because the little girl was so lovable, the noodle stall had fairly good business. Customers came and went without end.

If Chen Yuan had not known the plot, he would have found it difficult to believe that this blind, lame old man was actually Zuo Xinglie, the former bandit lord who had once dominated the Nine Rivers, leader of the Thirty-Six Waterways Alliance.

At that moment, more than ten martial artists dressed in blue and white suddenly stopped in front of the stall.

These people were clearly different from the local martial artists of Youzhou.

Youzhou lay in the north, where the climate was frigid and bleak most of the time. Thus, local martial artists preferred dark black clothing or fur-lined jackets.

Lan Prefecture lay in the south, so its martial artists generally wore lighter-colored garments such as blue and white.

The leader sized up Zuo Xinglie, then suddenly sneered and said in an authentic Lan Prefecture accent, "I never expected that the famed 'Nine-River Flood Dragon' would now actually be—"

Before he could finish, Zuo Xinglie abruptly flipped over the pot of noodle soup, sending scalding water splashing straight at the man's head!

"Fuck!"

The leader was naturally an intelligence agent from Skywind Rain-Listening Tower, with Meridian-Unblocking Realm strength.

He had intended to finish his lines before making a move, but he had not expected the old man to be so decisive. He was caught completely off guard.

In truth, their disguises had simply been too convincing.

Zuo Xinglie was a bandit lord. Even though he had retired from the martial world and hidden in Linked Mountains City, he had not abandoned the vigilance he ought to possess.

From the moment they appeared, Zuo Xinglie had already been prepared to act.

It was not merely their clothes and appearance. Their garments also carried the fishy, damp scent of water, a smell that only came from spending years traveling on waterways. Who knew where Wen Rou had found such clothes?

As Zuo Xinglie erupted into action, the leader swung his saber and sent the pot flying. Yet scalding water still poured over his head, making him bare his teeth in pain.

The Skywind Rain-Listening Tower intelligence agents behind him also drew their weapons and attacked.

Wen Rou had already told them that this time, they were only to pursue, not kill. But they still had to make it look as real as possible.

Zuo Xinglie might have been crippled, but he had once been a True Condensation Realm expert.

If they held back so much that they got themselves killed, they would become a laughingstock.

The instant Zuo Xinglie threw the pot, his right hand suddenly pulled a bamboo pole from the chopping board beside him, where it had been used as a carrying pole.

With a hard twist of his hand, the bamboo pole shattered inch by inch, revealing a five-foot Miao saber hidden within.

The blade swept through the air, gorgeous and dazzling, like the slash of a startled swan, accompanied by a burst of metallic clangs.

Zuo Xinglie's single strike actually forced several people back. His might was so great that no one could tell he was a cripple.

But Zuo Xinglie did not linger in battle. He scooped up his granddaughter and turned to flee.

Although one of his legs was crippled and his movements looked awkward when he pushed off with only one leg, he was astonishingly fast. In an instant, he had vanished around the street corner.

The leader shouted furiously, "After him!"

He truly was furious.

They had originally been ordered to put on an act, yet who would have thought that a crippled old man would catch him off guard and leave him dazed from the very first blow?

More than ten intelligence agents pursued him, with Chen Yuan following close behind.

He knew that Zuo Xinglie would not be able to hold out for long.

Zuo Xinglie's meridians had all been destroyed. He no longer had inner strength, and the force he used just now had come entirely from his physical body.

Yet his body was badly damaged as well, and one of his legs was crippled. Though only a little over sixty, he looked seventy or eighty. He simply could not keep going for long.

At that moment, Zuo Xinglie clutched his granddaughter in his arms and fled desperately toward the city outskirts, his single eye filled with despair.

He had never expected those bastards from the Mystic Whale Gang to still refuse to let him go after so many years.

He was already crippled. He had lost his cultivation and the great ambitions he once possessed.

Back then, if his son had not risked his life to hold back the pursuers, he too would have died upon the Nine Rivers.

His own death did not matter, but his granddaughter was the Zuo Family's only remaining bloodline. At the very least, he had to leave her a chance to survive!

The pursuers behind him drew closer and closer. Zuo Xinglie resisted desperately, but the hand holding his saber grew heavier and heavier, while his speed became slower and slower.

Just then, a loud shout suddenly rang out.

"Old sir, don't panic! I'll help you!"

Saber light descended. Chen Yuan knocked several intelligence agents aside with one slash, his face full of righteous indignation. "Martial-world grudges should never involve one's family! Yet you people actually attack an old man and a child, disregarding all martial honor. You are utterly shameless!"